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June 1, 2008

Our counter-argument to AfroNerd and The Angry Independent was never a denial of the existence of black women who condone and support cultural dysfunction.

Our statements simply pointed out the ludicrousness of telling us that WE (meaning black women with higher standards for ourselves and others) DON'T exist in significant numbers:To the black girls who are breaking academic records at Willingboro High School: they may not see you, BUT I SEE YOU.To the black female bus driver who takes my neighbor's kids to school safely every day, and always has a smile and word of encouragement: they may not see you, BUT I SEE YOU.To the black women who visit museums and patronize the fine arts: they may not see you, BUT I SEE YOU.To the black women who show up every Wednesday at church Food banks, carrying ridiculously heavy boxes of food all by yourselves to feed the hungry: they may not see you, BUT I SEE YOU.To the young black woman who studied late every night, struggled against the financial odds, withstood the worst of social circumstances and STILL graduated from Montclair college two days ago: they may not see you, BUT I SEE YOU.To the black women who have read every self-help book ever written, tried every diet, and worn every hairstyle in an endless quest to 'correct' everything that the world finds distasteful about black women: they may not see you, BUT I SEE YOU.To the black women who teach in the elementary schools, and stay up nights preparing lesson plans to 'excite' black children into learning: they may not see you, BUT I SEE YOU.To the black females who would never be honored with the title 'pastor', but counsel the rest of us, will take our deepest secrets to the grave with you, and uplift us with spiritual words of encouragement without condemnation: they may not see you, BUT I SEE YOU.To the black females who leave loving notes in their daughters' pockets to read during special events because Mommy has to work to put food on the table: they may not see you, BUT I SEE YOU.

These are real, live examples of black women that I have personally encountered in the past five days.MY SISTERS, LET US SHAKE OURSELVES FREE from the soul-killing imagery, the stereotypes, the 'one size fits all negative classifications' and the 'pseudo-statistics' of what MOST black women are. Open your eyes today and truly notice the black women around you.WHO DO YOU SEE?